Wittgenstein
When I was an undergraduate student, Wittgenstein was, in a certain sense, the man of the moment. Wittgenstein died on 28th April 1951 two days after his 62nd birthday. Twenty years later there were still plenty of academics, who had known him during his years at Cambridge and he continued to have a profound influence not just on philosophy but also on the social sciences. I think it is fair to say that he was not well understood. People would quote from him and some how association with him would, in some circles, be seen as positive.
I think it is fair to say that he was something of a cult figure. He attracted devotion and emulation both during his lifetime and over the subsequent years. I think there is still an interest but probably this has lessened over time.
As one of many retirement tasks, I have planned (and who knows whether I shall succeed) to read and more importantly try to understand his various writings. Of course, it is likely that a body of work that stretches from his teens to a couple of days before his death will contain more than one viewpoint. If I were younger, or more intellectually capable, I would stick with primary sources and seek to separate the work from the life. As it is, I think I need all the help I can get, so I will go to secondary sources (both praising and critical) - the aim is to understand and perhaps to see whether his insights can be applied in other fields.
